In 1990, shortly after The Mirage opened (and 1 year before today’s author graduated from high school), I gave a presentation to a group of global Coopers and Lybrand executives - they were the company’s external auditors and wanted to learn more about our opening. I explained how we hired for attitude and trained for skills and spoke about our philosophy that employee relations drove customer relations, which together drove profitability. And then I went on to describe the many programs that fueled our positive employee relations practices and programs, including catching employees doing things right, explaining “why”, extensive new-hire and management training programs, back-of-house employee areas that were every bit as nice as the front-of-house customer areas (including an employee dining room that was free for employees who could also bring guests for free), The Management Associate program (recruitment of recent hospitality college graduates), a program that rewarded perfect attendance, programs that recognized and rewarded community volunteerism, a concierge program for employees, and a landmark collective bargaining contract with the Culinary Union. These were spotlighted in my presentation, later covered extensively in industry and academic publications, and eventually copied by many other companies – big and small, around the world. The Mirage closed its doors this week to make way for a new Hard Rock Casino Resort. The media was filled recently with stories about its incredible 34-year run and how it revolutionized Las Vegas and the gaming industry – in part because of its size and scale and volcano, but more importantly because of its employee relations concepts and happy employees. You may not have a volcano, but you can and should have programs that ensure happy employees today.
Simon Sinek (born 1973): English-born American author and inspirational speaker on business leadership. His books include Start with Why (2009) and The Infinite Game (2019).
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